Partnering has been a business buzzword--and an effective
practice--for some time. But to make partnering pay even higher
dividends, find ways to do it your competitors won't think
of.

"Seek out [businesses that] want to accomplish the same
things you do but that might have different perspectives or
organizational backgrounds," says Scott Anderson, president of
Anderson Services and Consulting Inc., a Raleigh, North Carolina,
marketing and business development consulting firm.

For example, one of Anderson's clients had an idea for a new
product. The traditional business approach would be to find a
design firm to build a prototype, then either set up a facility to
make the item or contract out the manufacturing. But the client had
more ideas than time and resources, so Anderson suggested the
unconventional approach of licensing the product to a university,
where students could handle the design, manufacture and marketing,
and the entrepreneur would receive a royalty from sales.

Once you've identified potential partners, Anderson says,
consider how they'll benefit if you're successful, what
their skills and resources are, and to what extent they'll be
willing to contribute to your efforts. Rank them according to
potential, and contact them with plans that will benefit you both.
And remember, it's not necessarily the type of partner that
makes the relationship unconventional, says Anderson; it's how
you structure the relationship.

"You're using a resource at no cost to you that your
competitors aren't using," Anderson points out.
"You'll have more resources dedicated to achieving your
goals. If you become an advocate of your product, you can give your
potential partners a fire-in-the-belly kind of willingness to work
with you that they wouldn't otherwise have on their
own."

You may find partners who want to work with you simply for the
benefit it will bring to their operation; others will want a
commission, referral fee or some other compensation. If that's
what it takes and you can afford it, Anderson says you should be
willing to pay. "This is business," he says.
"It's not goodwill--everybody's doing it for some sort
of advantage."

Finally, if you implement a partnership, monitor its progress to
be sure you're getting what you need out of the relationship.
If you're not, Anderson says, either make the necessary changes
or find another partner.

In The Short Run

It doesn't pay to plan too far ahead.

Conventional wisdom says you need to have one-, two- and
five-year plans for your business. But speaker and trainer Terry
Brock begs to differ. "It worked well for Alfred Sloan when he
was running General Motors [from 1923 to 1956], but it doesn't
work that way today," says Brock, 42. "Now we've got
to roll with the punches, because technology has literally changed
everything."

Brock, president and owner of Achievement Systems Inc. in
Orlando, Florida, says today's business plans are tools to
use--and change--on a daily basis. Ideally, they should include six
months of detailed strategy, a year or two of general planning, and
a vision for the next five years.

A few years ago, Brock says, he would have recommended planning
your tactics for the next year. "Now a six-month time frame
makes sense in our environment, and that could change again to more
like three months," he says.

One example of how technology lets you--even forces you
to--change your business strategy is the advent of color printers,
says Brock. Five years ago, they were too expensive for the average
small business. Today, you can buy one for less than $200. With a
color printer, you can change your marketing materials more quickly
and easily, so if a strategy isn't working, you can change on
the turn of a dime.

Also consider how technology will affect your customers. If your
competitors begin offering extended services on their Web sites,
can you afford to dig in your heels just because it's not in
"the plan"? To avoid being overwhelmed or left behind,
you have to pay attention and stay flexible.

Perks Work

Give your part-timers a good reason to give you their
best.

Part-time employees are an essential segment of the work force
for many businesses, but it's not always easy to keep them
motivated. They often do low-level work, may not have much
opportunity for advancement and are frequently ignored by
full-timers. But regardless of how many hours someone works each
week, as an employer, you're entitled to get the maximum
benefit from the time people spend on the job.

So how can you keep part-timers enthused and productive? Linda
C. Haneborg, vice president of marketing and public relations for
Express Personnel Services in Oklahoma City, offers these tips:

Introduce new part-timers to your full-time staff.
"It's important to build a foundation for part-time
employees just as you do for full-timers," says Haneborg.
"Give them a tour of your facility, and explain what your
company does, what its goals are and what your vision
is."

Provide benefits. Make your part-time employees eligible for
the same benefits full-timers receive, such as insurance, vacation
and tuition reimbursement. Most companies prorate their benefits
based on hours worked--usually a minimum of 20--so what part-timers
receive is comparable to what is given to full-timers.

Train them. Everyone needs to be adequately trained to do their
job, no matter how many hours they work. Provide ongoing training
to enhance and expand their skills beyond basic job knowledge, and
to groom part-timers for eventual full-time positions.

Create an inclusive environment. "You need to create an
atmosphere that makes part-timers feel they're as worthwhile
and productive as full-time employees are," says Haneborg. If
you give gifts at holidays or recognize birthdays for full-timers,
do so for part-timers as well. Invite part-timers to participate in
company social events, sports teams and incentive programs.
Encourage them to participate in safety and quality programs.

Develop career paths. Although many part-timers choose to work
on a temporary basis because it suits their needs, a signifcant
number of them are looking for advancement opportunities. Take the
time to find out what their skills and goals are, and, if possible,
develop a plan for growth within your company that will let them
use their skills and meet their goals. Along these lines, you can
also help them avoid burnout and reduce your turnover if you give
part-timers a variety of tasks and not limit them to
"grunt" work.

Holding Back

How to give customers more by selling them less.

Should you sell something to a business customer just because
they want it--even though you know what they're asking for may
not be the best way to meet their needs? Absolutely not, says John
Broer, director of Strictly Speaking, a corporate training and
consulting firm in Sylvania, Ohio. "We have to put the
customer's agenda before our own," he says. "The old
school of `Shove it out the door at all costs' is being
replaced by a more cooperative philosophy of `This is what you
need, and when you need more, we've built the kind of
relationship that you'll come back to me.'"

This idea is especially important for businesses that supply
retailers. Today's savvy suppliers not only get to know their
customers, but take the time to educate them on how to get the most
out of their products and services.

Suppliers can increase customer loyalty among retailers by doing
such things as assisting with inventory management, helping
customers identify their consumption patterns to reduce spoilage
and avoid having excess cash tied up in inventory, providing
training on proper storage and handling, offering sales and
marketing advice, and participating in joint promotions.

But it all begins with educating the customer about your
willingness to do these things. "You have to find innovative
ways to differentiate yourself," Broer says. "Vendors
need to make a concerted effort to help their customers be more
effective. Building a strong relationship with the customer and
creating a mutual reliance makes for long-term business and
effective growth."

Tips

How much did that last staff meeting you held cost you in terms
of employee salaries, meals and refreshments, equipment rental, and
travel? Get the grim details by downloading Meeting Meter, a
free tool available from the CoWorking Institute Web site.

At Deep Fun, you'll also find plenty of suggestions on how
to raise meeting effectiveness and howt o put more fun into work,
yet remain productive. Another freebie is Meeting System IQ Test,
which steers you through a look at how well your employees
communicate and how you can create a working environment to
complete projects at a fast - but fun - pace.